1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical reading apparatus, more specifically, to an optical reading apparatus suitable for easily reading data recorded on a card medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
As disclosed in, for example, Jap. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 58-123165, a data reading apparatus with which a card medium is manually handled, is conventionally known.
This conventional data reading apparatus is an install-type card reading apparatus for reading bar-code data from a bar code written on a card.
FIG. 10 shows an appearance of such a conventional data reading apparatus.
This data reading apparatus includes a box 50, in which a light generation/detection device 51 and a spring 54 are provided.
In the box 50, a groove is formed by cutting into the box. A card 52, on which a bar code 53 is written, is inserted into the groove, and bar-code data is read from the bar code 53 as the card is inserted to the groove, or when the card is pushed back by the spring 54.
Recently, data cards have become popular as a data recording medium, and there is a great demand for reducing the production cost of a card medium itself.
Therefore, the use of a card medium formed by printing data on a piece of inexpensive paper or soft card medium, is getting more popular.
However, if such an inexpensive paper-made card medium, or a so-called soft card medium, is manually inserted in the conventional reading apparatus so as to read data of the medium, the card medium is likely to be bent, making it difficult to insert it again, or folded due to the repulsing force of the spring provided in the apparatus. In such a case, it may become impossible to read the data from the card medium.
Furthermore, while inserting the card medium, even if the card medium is carefully pushed with fingers, the card medium may stick to the fingers when the user tries to take his or her fingers away from the card medium, possibly causing a data reading error. The above-described problem may prominently occur especially when a thin-paper-made card medium is used.
Thus, when data is read out from a data card in which, for example, a two-dimensional bar code is written, reading errors may easily occur depending upon the manner by which the card is inserted.
On the other hand, phone cards used for public telephones or the like, or cards for cash dispensers are usually automatically loaded to or unloaded from those machines by the driving force of the motor.
However, in this case, a complicated driving system must be provided, thus increasing the production cost and the amount of power consumption.